1 Like the new digs?
2 I do.
3 I was able to get a message out there in about a third the time.
4 This is being written yesterday afternoon. At least the first seven items were.
5 I had no idea how to launch this #afternoonnapneeded
6 Think I'll sleep on it for a moment. <yawn>
7 Well that was short! <begins writing for today's DN after short nap.>
8 I had a pretty easy go of it yesterday. I taught students about the Mensa society, you know, the group that comes up with the world's best brain teasers.
9 I explained a little of its history, beginning with the name Mensa. I'll let Mensa.org take over. This is from their website.
Mensa was founded in England in 1946 by Roland Berrill, a barrister, and Dr. Lance Ware, a scientist and lawyer. They had the idea of forming a society for bright people, the only qualification for membership of which was a high IQ. The original aims were, as they are today, to create a society that is non-political and free from all racial or religious distinctions. The society welcomes people from every walk of life whose IQ is in the top 2% of the population, with the objective of enjoying each other's company and participating in a wide range of social and cultural activities.
10 Now that you are in full illumination, let me say a bit more about the organization. They chose the name because it is the Latin word for "table," giving it a round-table theme and feel, as well as a clear message that anyone could join and all would be equal. To join you would need to pass a timed test.
11 Years ago I taught a brief history of Mensa to my students. I was always talking it up, because I do think that the learning apps of the human computer are needed in order for students to tackle not only tests in school, but tests in life as well. I'm SO deep. = ) <-------feeble try at smiley guy emoticon
12 It falls into the idea of Common Core rather nicely, as it requires skills in math, for example, to be used in other applications, English puzzles being some of the best.
13 Here is a sample Mensa teaser: "I am a man. If Larry's son is my son's father, what relationship am I to Larry?" to which there are five suggested answers: a) his grandfather b) his father c) his son d) I am Larry f) his uncle.
14 I'll let you chew on that one for a while. It isn't as easy as it seems. Go ahead. I'll give the answer later on in this piece.
15 <Lennonesque music up.> And so this is Mensa.
16 I recall one year getting all excited about teaching students how to think, and how to get smarter, when a Mexican student sitting in the back of the room raised his hand. I was doing the "I'm SO on It Teachers' Rag," always a Hubrisian mistake. Rudolph Flesch just turned in his grave for the second time in a week. Anyway, I was crowing and dancing and into a groove. Hands flew up. I looked to the kid in the back of the room excitedly.
17 "Yes!" I said pointing to the student. I don't recall the student's name, but I do remember his inquest.
18 "Mr. H, do you know what Mensa means?" My antic actions probably scared a few people. "Yes, it is Latin for 'table'!" came my quick response."
19 "Do you know what it means in Spanish?"
20
21 Guy stopped the room.
22 I hedged knowing my Gringo ass was grass. "Well I know that "mesa" means... I continued on of the greatest back pedals since Jimmy Carter called Hubert Humphrey "Hubert Horatio HAWNBLOWUH!"
23 The student remained staid. He continued calmly. "It means 'stupid,' or 'dumb,' or something close to that. It doesn't translate that well, but that's what it means."
24 I swooned, only this time with a sort of laughter that might rival the Joker. The joke was on me, but the joke was more on Mensa!
25 The class laughed instantly right along with me, and I said between breaths, "So...the most intelligent society on God's good Earth named themselves something that means 'stupid' or 'dumb' in Spanish and NOBODY got it???"
26 I was beside myself, and remain beside myself to this moment, since they NEVER changed nor really addressed this publicly so far as I know.
27 Bunch of white guys with white hair and VERY red faces, I'm quite sure when they found out.
28 Their response? It may as well have been, "Here's five dollars. Keep it under your hat!"
29 Mensa.
30 I can dovetail that one with a practical joke I pulled at YB one time. I put in a last-minute bulletin to the Daily Bulletin that read, roughly, this: "Whoever put an 'A' on the men's restroom in the "B" building so that it read, 'Mensa,' hey, that wasn't funny. A lot of students thought that only super-smart people could use that rest room. Let's make this loud and clear: the restrooms are for ALL WARRIORS!"
31 It made its way into the airwaves! I don't think too many people heard it, but I heard it in my own classroom, which was pretty noisy during the bulletins. I chuckled. How could I not?
32 Ironically I am not a practical joker at all, as I find most practical jokes pretty unfunny and more often than not pretty stupid.
33 It's just that we all have that little streak in us that breaks loose every now and then and causes us untold guffaws inside our kindly exteriors.
34 That was one for the ages though, I must say.
35 Moving on, Part One: The answer to the Larry problem <see item 13, above.> is this: c) his son.
36 It usually is solved by a student who is good at math, of all things. How? Pairing it down using such simple math apps as an = sign and the premise of the least-common denominator.
37 Translation: See the chart below.
Larry's son = My son's father.
My son's father = me.
Larry's son = me.
∴ In a perfect world, I am Larry's son.
38 Nayext!!!
39 I called it the "Larry problem" just because I know that math people deal with these challenges as problems.
40 A long time ago I agreed with the great Thuy Ann Le to make a genuine attempt to eliminate the word "problem" from the language, and instead to switch it to "challenge."
41 I have done that ever since.
42 It didn't take much. When I was in the vending bizz, (sporting events, rock concerts, Motocross events, circuses, etc.) we had a union business agent who had a booming voice. Each day he would gather us together for notes, and each day he would stand silent, and then he would begin our day with these words,shouted to the gods: "We got a PROBLEM!"
43 The guy would then tell horror stories of the day before: one guy who was rude, or who did something stupid, another had his money stolen, little things. Then he would proceed to berate all of us for around ten or fifteen minutes before we had to go out there.
44 It was always a GREAT pep talk, because we would always goof on it later on, as people are wont to do. We would laugh and goof at all his negatives, AND the fact that we always had a "PROBLEM!" Positive vibes all around.
45 I loved working with Thuy Ann because she always thought of ways around the problems that eventually became challenges.
46 It's a great way to think. Shall I call it then,"The Larry Challenge?"
47 Nah. It might upset someone. Problem works, I imagine, somewhere in the magical world of math. Why spoil it?
48 Moving on, Part the Second: Anybody lookin'?
49 Moving on, Part the Thoid: Well, once again I find myself up against the clock.
50 I'm still going in today with a Mensa book in my arms.
51 We had the laughs, now we have to get to the solving of the challenges.
52 I'm sure we'll all come out okay in the end.
53 Meanwhile, you forget the word problems and face your challenges bravely today.
54 I can only promise you that I will do the same.
55 Have an AWESOME day, and take no prisoners!
56 See you again.
57 Peace.
~H~
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